In today's article from the series entitled "Tuesday Mornings for the Construction Industry", we would like to briefly present the changes in the law on which legislative work began in November this year or the changes whose entry into force by the end of 2024 has already been confirmed by the legislator.
I. Electronic Communications Law
On November 10, 2024, new telecommunications law entered into force, the Act of July 12, 2024 – Electronic Communications Law (hereinafter: ECL), which implements several EU legal acts into Polish law, including Directive 2018/1972 establishing the European Electronic Communications Code. The new regulations are intended to provide consumers with, among other things, greater security, clarity of operator messages, protection against additional charges for external services, and easier contract cancellation.
Key changes include: (i) a publicly available and free comparison tool for offers from various telecommunications companies; (ii) the Advanced Mobile Locator (AML) service, which will enable precise location information for callers to the 112 emergency number and other three-digit emergency numbers; (iii) consumers who use prepaid services will be able to recover any remaining balance on their account when they stop using them; (iv) service offers and contracts must be written in plain and understandable language; and (v) the introduction of common chargers for phones and other mobile devices. These chargers will be compatible, which will reduce the amount of electronic waste and allow consumers to save money.
This act also impacts the activities of other businesses, not just telecommunications companies. Changes have also been made to direct marketing practices. Simplifications have been introduced to eliminate doubts about the need to collect two consents: one under Article 172 of the Telecommunications Law ("point") and one under Article 10 of the Act on Providing Services by Electronic Means ("the bridle").
This means that currently, marketing activities must only collect a single consent pursuant to Article 398 of the GDPR, which must also meet the requirements of valid consent under the GDPR: voluntary, informed, unambiguous, and specific. For example, to meet the voluntary consent requirement, the consent checkbox must be checked by default, the end user must not feel coerced in giving consent, nor can it be included in contracts or make the conclusion of a contract contingent upon consent. Tacit consent is not acceptable. Additional consent must be as easy to withdraw as its expression, and its withdrawal must not entail any negative consequences for the data subject.
Developers should collect consents that meet the above requirements. It should also be noted that consents previously collected under the Telecommunications Law and the Act on the Provision of Electronic Services may prove to meet the current consent requirements, primarily compliance with the GDPR and the option to select specific telecommunications terminal devices. If you have any doubts about the correctness of the documents used, please contact us and we will be happy to advise you on adapting them to the applicable regulations.
II. "HOME" Portal
The Council of Ministers is still working on the adoption of regulations introducing the Real Estate Trading Data Portal ("DOM Portal"), which will be used to present statistics on transaction prices in the housing market. The legal basis for the DOM Portal's operation is to be an amendment to the so-called Developer Act. The DOM Portal is intended, on the one hand, to contribute to increased transparency of the real estate market for citizens, and, on the other hand, to provide public authorities with the information necessary to properly implement the state's housing policy. We wrote about the advantages and disadvantages of the program in #221.
As announced by the Ministry of Development and Technology, the DOM Portal will start operating 20 months after the announcement of the act , however, its full functionality will be achieved only after the portal is appropriately supplied with data that will flow and be entered into the portal along with concluded market transactions.
III. Amendments to the Environmental Protection Law Act
On November 15, 2024, a draft amendment to, among other things, the Environmental Protection Law Act . The draft introduces solutions to strengthen the environmental dimension of urban policy, in particular strengthening aspects of the ecological transformation of cities, including improving air quality.
The project envisages the mandatory development of urban climate change adaptation plans (MPAs) for cities with a population of over 20,000, and the inclusion of climate change adaptation in strategic documents, including those related to urban spatial planning and the introduction of regulations that will improve the operation of financial programs such as "Stop Smog" and "Clean Air."
IV. Amendment to the Construction Law
On November 5, 2024, a meeting of the Infrastructure Committee was held, during which a parliamentary draft amendment to the Building Law was referred to a special subcommittee. The proposed amendments introduce definitions of a protective structure, shelter, and concealment into the Building Law . As the explanatory memorandum states: "The draft law aims to supplement and amend existing regulations to enable local governments to properly fulfill their constitutional obligation to protect citizens. The proposed regulations are also intended to encourage citizens to create home shelters and concealments, and to oblige investors to respect existing legal norms."
V. Amendment to the Act on Population Protection
On November 8, 2024, the Act on Population Protection and Civil Defense was passed. The Act establishes a population protection system that could evolve into civil defense , as well as a secure state communications system that will ensure the continuity of administration and the protection of the population in times of peace and war.
From the developers' perspective, Article 94 of the Act is particularly important. It stipulates that basement levels in multi-family residential buildings and underground garages, if not equipped with a protective structure, must be designed and constructed to accommodate temporary shelters . This includes, among other things, reinforced ceilings above basements and garages. These changes are intended to increase the number of shelters available in emergency situations.
The regulations will apply to projects for which building permit applications are submitted after December 31, 2025.
VI. Amendments to the Aviation Law Act
The government's draft bill amending the Aviation Law and certain other acts was submitted to the Sejm on 12 November 2024. This bill aims to align Polish law with EU regulations governing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), i.e. drones and their systems, and to increase the level of safety in civil aviation in order to ensure the application of the provisions of the Base Regulation (EU) 2019/1139 of the European Parliament and of the Council, Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/945, and Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/947.
The proposal also aims to unlock opportunities for the spatial development of Polish cities by modifying specific spatial planning and development principles around airports, while simultaneously increasing the level of airport security protection. In practice, the amendment assumes the waiver of the requirement to adopt local spatial development plans for areas covered by airport master plans, allowing for the issuance of development decisions for areas covered by airport master plans as well .
The bill was referred for first reading to the Infrastructure Committee, with a recommendation to seek the opinion of the Special Services Committee. The deadline for submitting a report was set for December 17, 2024.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
Legal status as of December 3, 2024
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